Ditto what lisanti said. Although mountain laurel usually only require pruning to remove dead, diseased or crossing branches, or if the plant has become too leggy. If leggy, rejuvenation pruning is recommended by removing up to 1/3 of the oldest/tallest stems, which will prompt new growth from the base. Simply cutting back a bit will not give desired results (been there, done that, learned the hard way).

Before replacing the azaleas, find out what they are infested with. The shrubs forum is a good suggestion, or take a sample to your county's Cooperative Extension Service for an ID of the problem and recommended remedy.

Thank you!

I didn't even think of mountain laurels; my mind jumped to the ubiquitous cherry laurel and its relatives.

Hmmm, good point, lisanti. My mind jumped to the mountain laurels, I guess because we're surrounded by them.

William, do you know what kind of laurels you have?

Hi I believe they are English laurels

You can prune them then, if you need to, but they usually stay within bounds - why do they need to be pruned? Boxwoods, too, are fairly well-behaved and rarely need more than trimming.